Flight of the Gryphon

by Ann Durand

  Mike looked at Maria and the other technicians, who were all nodding. "Thank you," he said. "I sure could use some sleep before the trip."

  "Yeah, and you've got some packing to do, too, don't you?" Juan asked. He furrowed his brow. "How do you pack for a trip to a place that existed six thousand years ago, anyway?"

  "I don't need much," Mike said. "In the spirit of non-interference, it will be up to me to adjust to their way of life. I can't bring tools that will set me apart. Though, I'm no longer beholden to the former policies of Tescali Lab, there are certain elements about our oath that I'd like to honor."

  "Not even one tiny little EM Sphere?" Maria cocked her head. "How can you resist? At least take an AirPillow with you. You'll sleep better at night."

  Mike laughed. "No, actually, I will have everything I need; all the comforts of home at my fingertips."

  "How do you figure?" Juan asked.

  "I'll have Gryphon. I can come back and visit whenever I want."

  "Ahh. So that's it." Alice stabbed the air with her forefinger. "No wonder you're so calm about leaving all the modern conveniences. You're not leaving them."

  "Yes and no. I intend to live in Parallon, but there's no reason to ignore certain benefits from our time, such as the medicine."

  "And AeroCars and SleepLift suspension beds." Alice tossed her chin, grinning.

  "And chocolate," Maria added.

  Everyone laughed.

  "Well, why not the best of both worlds?" Mike felt pleased with himself. "We do have a choice."

  "Does Katera know you'll be traveling back and forth with Gryphon?"

  Mike shook his head. "No, haven't had a chance to say anything yet. I've been here every day and night since we started this, but I'll tell her before we leave. I intend to bring her with me sometimes, too. She doesn't like living here, but she may enjoy visiting."

  Maria laughed and stuck out her hand. "Well, go get some rest, Dr. Leno. It's been a pleasure. Good luck to you."

  Mike shook her hand and grabbed the others as they were offered. After pumping all around and proffering his gratitude, he strolled to the door and headed home for the first time in two weeks. Home, where he knew Katera waited, anxiously. Home, to fall into the arms of his beloved.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Katera smoothed the material of her spullera laid out next to her panna on the glistening silver cover on the air bed. With delicate strokes, she brushed the soft fibers of her spullera with her fingertips. The moment she'd learned that she was going back to Parallon, she'd rescued the skirt and top from an antique, carved wooden chest at the foot of their bed. Both garments, cleaned of the splattered blood from her severed finger, had been stored in the chest soon after her arrival in 2275. They looked as good as new. She didn't need anything else for this trip. Everything she wanted existed in Parallon.

  She heard Mikolen locking his Lynx in the front of the house and raced from the bedroom to meet him at the front door. It retracted to reveal him looking rumpled and tired. She threw her arms around his neck. He wrapped his around her waist and lifted her feet off the floor, his nose tucked in her hair.

  "You smell good," he mumbled.

  Katera laughed and asked him the question that had been perched on her lips since she'd seen him two weeks ago. "Mikolen? When do we get to leave? Are you finished with Gryphon?"

  He allowed her feet to slip back to the floor and held her at arm's length. "Is tomorrow morning soon enough?"

  Katera clasped both hands over her chest. "You mean…?"

  "I mean, are you packed, yet?"

  Katera inhaled sharply. "Tomorrow?"

  Mikolen's face cracked into a smile, and he nodded. "Tomorrow morning at 6 AM you, dear lady, are returning to the caves near the village of Parallon. The date is set for July 25thin the year 3,540 BC, one day after we left it seven months ago."

  "Oh!" Katera did a little hop. "Mama and Papa will be so surprised."

  Mikolen laughed. "They won't have had much time to miss you. Remember, you've only been gone a day. They're still celebrating Askinadon's death and their new freedom."

  "Yes. A big party." She clapped her hands together.

  Mikolen smiled. "Yes, and we're going to join that big party, but in our own way."

  "What do you mean?"

  "I mean," he said, pulling her to him, "that you'd better skip over to the Elder House and grab one of those old guys, tell him meet us in the village square, you know, outside the temple."

  "The Temple Lukora Lupana? Really? Should he bring the Book of Lupana with him?"

  "Do they use the Book of Lupana to read inspiring things at a wedding?" Mikolen's voice had turned soft.

  "Mana ke, das rana rana ke, Lupana na te kopa oni, ken dokoru chena chena oni sta," Katera said, sliding her arms back around his neck. "Gift of love, gift of two hearts, Lupana bless this sacred union for all of their lives together. I believe that's how the opening goes."

  "Ah, yes," Mikolen whispered, leaning into her. "That's perfect for us…for all of our lives together."

  All our lives together…that means for the rest of his life in Parallon, Katera realized. Doubt, that familiar shadow, seized her gut. Maybe now was the time. She needed to ask…to know that he was sure. Mikolen was looking at her thoughtfully.

  "Are you okay?"

  Katera sighed. "I have to know. Are you going to be happy living the rest of your life in Parallon six thousand years in the past? Won't you miss your world…all the magic here? AeroCars and underwater cities, and your Lynx…what will you do without it?"

  A mischievous light went on in Mikolen's eyes. He raised a brow. "I'll ride a hoshdel, that's what I'll do."

  Unconvinced, Katera plunged ahead. "I miss my world so much-how will you not miss yours? In your world, you are one of the top scientists that ever lived. You won't be inventing anything like a time machine in Parallon, that's for certain."

  Mikolen studied her quietly, then slipped an arm around her back, the other under her knees and lifted. He carried her into the living room where he sank into a SuspensionChair, allowing Katera to fall in his lap. She curled her legs up and laid her head on his chest. He picked up a strand of her hair, threaded it back over her head. She waited as a thoughtful silence grew between them. When Mikolen spoke, it was as if he were responding to something deep inside him.

  "I don't care about inventing time machines." His voice was quiet and imbued with inflection, like a whispered song. "I've spent over ten years of my life designing and building them, and I don't need to ever make another one." He paused. "It's strange, but I miss Parallon more than I ever missed my own world. I mean, I tried my best to get back to 2275, but that was because I'd taken an oath. I had a mission to complete. It was pretty lousy being by myself in Parallon, but I still loved the place-those open meadows, the fresh air, cool mountaintops. I loved training and riding hoshdels-and, oh, God, I loved the hunt. It was always a challenge to find food, and the kiddiks kept me busy devising new methods and better weapons all the time. I adore kiddik stew; I loved making my own wine, and in a strange way all of this was more satisfying than devising theories and mathematical equations for countless hours inside stuffy labs." He stopped, and Katera lifted her head to look at him. "Except for the part that I was all alone, I loved it…and now, I'm not alone. I do miss Parallon. Strange as it may seem."

  The knot in Katera's stomach dissolved inside a wave of relief. She sat up.

  "Do you mean it? Are you sure, Mikolen?"

  He held his palm against her cheek. "I do mean it, and I am sure. I find Parallon more satisfying than this place, but there is one thing."

  Katera knitted her brow. "I knew it. What is it?"

  "It's no biggie. Gryphon will be available to us, that's all-so why not use it? We can live in Parallon and visit this world, too. I mean, if our children need medical attention…Katera, why wouldn't we take advantage of that? How could we not keep Gryphon, if only for emergencies?"

  Kater
a felt a stab of uncertainty. "If you're always traveling back to your world…"

  "Not always. On rare occasions, and only when it's necessary."

  "Even so. If you keep coming back here, you might decide you like it better at some point. So what if some day you don't return to Parallon? What's to keep you from staying here for the rest of your life? Why would you bother coming back?" She bit her lip and searched his face.

  "Why?" he asked, forcefully. "Don't you get it? You've got me…completely. My heart is in your hands. If anyone had told me ten years ago that I'd be willing to leave everything in this world to stay with a woman from the distant past, I'd have called them crazy. I sure never meant to fall in love with you."

  "Gee, thanks."

  He ignored her comment. His eyes glittered, as if he was reliving the events. "But it happened. And during my last week in Parallon, too. After ten long years, I meet you in the final stretch. Amazing."

  And then, he did something that almost made her heart stop. He picked up her hand and kissed each finger. Slowly, one at a time, he lingered on each digit. When he looked at her again, her Lan Ma Ke burst alive.

  At last, she got it. She knew beyond a doubt that Mikolen loved her as much as life itself. Not just for the moment, but for always. He would stay with her in Parallon, because he wanted to be with her. She knew it. More than anything, she wanted to be with him. Her two greatest desires-to live in Parallon and be with her one true love-it was all coming true. Blinking back tears and unable to speak, she looped her arms around his neck and moved her lips to his.

  Immediately, his tongue sought hers. The dreams she'd been having for two long weeks while he'd been away erupted in a blaze of heat. Silently, she thanked Lupana for this union, for the dance of love that she lately understood could complete a man and a woman…a dance that she now craved. She felt his hardness rise beneath her, pressing against the back of her thigh and stirring her loins awake. She took a deep breath, pulled her head away and climbed off his lap.

  "Follow me," she said.

  She threaded her fingers into his and led him into the living room, through the door and outside into the atrium. The light was dim and fading fast. The high windows in the east wall of the house glowed like mirrors in the reflection of the sinking sun.

  Katera turned to face Mikolen. She held out one arm signaling him to stop, and with the other pulled the tab to release her dress. It dropped in a pile around her feet. She had not bothered to put on any undergarments, a habit left over from her Parallonian days. Unlike the first time, her nudity did not make her feel vulnerable. She relished the soft look of appreciation in his eyes as they swept over her body. She stepped from the dress, scooped it up, and tossed it to one side.

  "I won't be wearing that again," she said, as the cool evening air fanned her skin and stirred her nipples awake.

  "Not unless you're packing it, I guess you won't." Mikolen's gaze settled on her eyes, but his hands were reaching for her breasts. "And I can't wait to see you in a spullera again. If only to see how fast I can get you out of it."

  His eyes were glazed as she caught his hands, returned them to his side.

  "Hm-mm," she said, shaking her head. "Not yet."

  Pinning him with her eyes, she curled her fingers into the top of his pants and grabbed the tab there, yanking it up and back. His pants opened from his navel to his crotch. She searched and found the tab for his shorts and pulled. They, too, opened. She tore her eyes from his and glanced down.

  With both hands, she grabbed his pants and shorts at his waist and lowered them, guiding them to his feet. As he leaned over to pull them over his shoes, her eyes returned, irresistibly drawn, to his hardened flesh. Mikolen straightened, and she stood up, allowing his tip to trail over the length of her body. He moaned and pulled his shirt over his head, wobbling on unsteady feet. He let the shirt fall, inside out, in a careless heap on the stone floor.

  Katera laid one hand on his shoulder, and with the other explored his chest, his arms, his tummy, then gently stroked his erection. A longer moan escaped his lips. He reached for her again. She moved his hands back to his side and resumed her stroking.

  He stood with his mouth open, breathing hard, watching her face. Then, as if he couldn't stand it any longer, he cried out and grabbed her, pressed his body to hers, flesh to flesh, pushing her across the atrium until her back hit the far wall. There, he lifted her bottom and commanded her to wrap her legs around him. He lowered her torso and shoved upward.

  A guttural groan bubbled up from Katera's throat. He thrust again, and she groaned again. Unable to move with him, she sat pinned against the wall, suspended as he thrust within her. A hard ball of heat and desire grew inside her. The ball grew tighter, more intense, until it crested and spilled over. She called out his name. A series of convulsions rocked her as she abandoned herself to a flood of sensations. Her legs buckled around his midsection, and he jockeyed his hands under her bottom for more support. She allowed herself to fall into them, trusting, surrendering, until the last tremor played out. Finally, weak and spent, her legs dropped from his waist, trembling from the effort.

  But Mikolen wasn't finished. He lowered her to the stone floor, pressed his body on top of hers, and drove into her. When a new round of throbs pulsed within her, she caught the rhythm and moved with it in stunned delight. As he pitched between her legs, his tongue found her breast and circled the peak. She threw her head back against the wall as her breathing quickened, deepened. This was the dance, their dance. She could feel nothing else, only the dance. She let her passion rise with his, and in a single expression of ecstasy, they let go together.

  Panting and contented, she listened to the chirrups of the aviary on the opposite wall, savoring the weight of Mikolen over her. For the first time, she realized that darkness had settled all around them.

  "I suppose we could spend the night here like this," she teased.

  "Yeah, but then I'd forget about our date with the Gryphon." He smiled. "Nothing like a night under the moon naked with you to forget the rest of the universe."

  "Parallon will simply have to wait, then," she said, laughing.

  But Mikolen didn't laugh. He was looking at her hungrily. She opened her mouth to say something, to suggest they move indoors, but his lips had moved over hers.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  "It's an easy ride, Katera. You've done it before," Mike said, locking the Lynx into a slot at the KQES parking lot.

  He turned to her and marveled at the lights dancing in her eyes, sparkling with an intensity that rivaled starlight.

  "That doesn't count. I was unconscious in Silver Gate," she said, thrusting her chin in the air. "As far as I'm concerned, this is the first time."

  "Well, if you can drive a LandCar, you can manage this ride. All you do is sit in a chair, anyway."

  Mike hopped out of the Lynx, met Katera on the other side. She looked impossibly appealing in her spullera, beaded panna, and slippers- like an earthen goddess. She'd left her long hair loose, piling freely over her shoulders. A simple string of tiny flowers woven into several strands of hair echoed a style used by the women of her village.

  "Yes, but what's the ride like?" she insisted, as Mike pressed his thumb into the ID panel of the Lynx to lock it. "And why aren't you locking the Lynx in the long-term lot? This lot is only good for a week. Then they tow it away."

  He took her arm. "To answer your first question, you'll find out about the ride soon enough, if you think you'll be able to sit down in the Gryphon." He eyed her playfully. "As to the second question, when I return to 2275, it'll be within an hour or two, or a day at the most from the time we left. This is a time machine, remember? I can choose when I return, as long as…"

  "As long as you don't come back before you left," Katera finished, poking a finger in the air.

  "Correct, Maestra."

  Mike laughed, delighted with her enthusiasm. She'd been bristling with energy since they woke up this morning. If she we
re any more excited, he'd have to weigh down her shoes to keep her feet on the ground, he thought, smiling. They turned the corner and reached the door. He pressed his thumb into another ID pad and the door opened. Katera raced into the large construction room ahead of him like a child, impatient with expectation.

  "Where is it?" she called, twirling around, her hair flying in all directions.

  Mike pulled up behind her.

  "Gryphon's right there," he said, turning to a far corner.

  Katera pivoted toward it and wrinkled her features. "Where? I don't see anything."

  Gryphon was not in the corner. A column of apprehension shot up into Mike's throat. His heart pounding, he instructed Katera to stay put, and walked to the empty spot, forcing himself to appear calm. Where was Gryphon? Did Felipa have it moved? If so, why didn't anyone tell him? As he neared the corner, he spotted a note tacked to the wall with a message scrawled on it in a shaky hand, as if the writer was horribly weak.

  Felipa.

  He snatched it off the wall and, with his back to Katera, read it.

  Dear Mike,

  I am so sorry I used you this way, but I am lost without my Greg. I must, MUST, find him again. I want, no, I NEED to see him one last time, if only for a few minutes. I want to see him, look into his eyes. I want to say goodbye, and I want to hold him again before we both die. I want to be with the real Greg, the living Greg, not grieve the dead one.

  That means that I have to travel back to the time when the lab was abducted and had just landed in Parallon. You said Greg was injured and you dragged him into the supply closet. I am going to look for him there. I have set the stargate to arrive in the lab in another room. I cannot run into you there, because if you see me, you'll know, in the future, that I came back to the past and you might decide not to build Gryphon when I ask. That, in turn, would prevent me from returning to the past. The conflict, as you know, could create a parallel universe. I don't want that. I just want to be with the Greg from this universe. I have set Gryphon to arrive fifteen minutes after the lab landed. That's after you left Greg in the closet and, I think, after Askins chased you outside. That will give me the time I need with Greg before we are both killed, and I can be sure that you won't see me.